"Hey! Yellow Monkey, call your Dog King," Max ordered, gesturing lazily at Kizaru, whose eyebrow twitched at the insult. He was taken aback for a moment, wondering what Max meant.
Max grinned, clarifying, "I meant your Fleet Admiral. Isn't he just a glorified 'King of Dogs' with a title handed down by the World Government?" Max chuckled, as if amused by his own words, while the others shared knowing smirks.
"You might be the first one brave enough to call Sengoku that," Bullet remarked raising his brows, earning nods from both World and Redfield.
"I mean, it's the most fitting title for him," Max shrugged, signaling Kizaru to make the call.
The Den Den Mushi connected, and Sengoku's calm voice came through, "Is it done?"
Kizaru's lips twitched slightly, but he managed to respond, "I… am captured."
There was a pause before Sengoku replied dryly, "…If this is your excuse, you're not getting any vacation."
Max shook his head with a grin, taking the receiver. "Oshi moshi, konichiwa, hajimemashite!" he greeted with a mix of languages, sounding both playful and mocking. Gwen watched with a raised brow, shaking her head at Max's antics.
"Who are you?" Sengoku's voice was sharp as he frowned at the Den Den Mushi.
"The one who's captured your Marine Admiral," Max replied casually. "The Night Lord Max of the Night Monarch Pirates."
Sengoku raised a brow. "And what do you think you're achieving with this little stunt?"
Max smirked. "Simple. Kizaru's our prisoner now. Give us what we want, or you'll be receiving his corpse instead."
Sengoku's expression darkened. "Do you really think some upstart pirate can threaten us?"
"Oh, I'm sure of it," Max replied, unbothered. "We rookies took down your Admiral, so yeah, I'd say we can threaten you."
Sengoku's tone grew grimmer. "What is it you want?"
"A Logia-type Devil Fruit would be a good start," Max said nonchalantly.
"What?" Sengoku scowled. "Do you think we can just hand out Logia Fruits on demand?"
Max pretended to clean his ear. "Sheesh, no need to shout. You've got ten days. We'll meet at Punk Hazard. Bring what we want, and you get your Admiral back. On the eleventh day… you'll get his corpse instead. Sayonara." With that, he cut the call, leaving Sengoku fuming on the other end.
Sengoku looked down at the Den Den Mushi, deep in thought. "Who is this Max?" he wondered aloud.
Tsuru, nearby, held a file and replied, "There's only one mention of him so far, in Alabasta. He's been seen associating with this new group… the Spidey Pirates."
Sengoku raised a brow. "And our two new Vice Admirals, Bucky and Yulia, were sighted with him as well?"
Tsuru nodded. "Yes, they were last seen together in Alabasta. It appears Max left shortly after, but now he's resurfaced."
Sengoku frowned. "Are the Spidey Pirates and this… Night Monarch Pirates connected?"
"We can't say for certain," Tsuru said, considering. "They could be allies, or perhaps they share some origin—maybe the same village or hometown."
Sengoku's gaze sharpened. "Whatever their connection, Max has already proven himself a threat if he's capable of capturing an Admiral. We'll need to keep close tabs on any movement from both these groups."
"The Spidey Pirates appear harmless," Tsuru explained. "They're more like adventurers, exploring every island in their path—big or small. But their strength is undeniable; they managed to defeat Vice Admirals Doberman and Strawberry."
Sengoku raised an eyebrow. "And yet they didn't kill them, despite having a clear advantage?"
Tsuru nodded. "Correct. They spared them. It seems each member has Devil Fruit abilities as well. Their captain, Peter, has the Domination Fruit, which supposedly allows him to control anything he desires."
Sengoku waved a hand dismissively. "Just a bunch of kids out at sea. Leave them be for now. Our priority is understanding why Max captured Kizaru."
Tsuru added, "During the skirmish, Kizaru mentioned that a young man laughed and said causing chaos was the best way to lure an Admiral into battle."
Sengoku glanced at her. "You think that young man was Max?"
Tsuru shook her head. "It's possible. But we'll need to dig deeper to confirm."
"Anyway, send Akainu and Aokiji to Punk Hazard," Sengoku ordered. "And bring that Cloud-Cloud Devil Fruit with them. Kizaru is more valuable than any Logia fruit."
Tsuru nodded in agreement. "Understood." She turned to leave, pausing only to ensure, "We'll keep Kizaru's capture classified?"
"Yes," Sengoku confirmed. "Make sure word doesn't leak. The last thing we need is panic among the ranks."
Tsuru gave a firm nod before heading out to make the necessary arrangements, setting the wheels in motion to retrieve Kizaru discreetly.
***
Max leaned against the ship's rail, his eyes on the approaching island of Punk Hazard. He had two objectives: to exchange Kizaru for a Devil Fruit and to obtain the artificial Mythical Zoan Dragon Fruit hidden on the island.
"Combining it with the Venom-Venom Fruit, Spinosaurus, Nine-Tails Mythical Zoan, and Black Hole Fruit will yield the Black Star Dragon Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit," Max thought, his mind racing over the combination details he'd calculated with the help of his system—though it had come at a price.
"With that Dragon Fruit in hand," he mused, "I'll have a cool transformation ability"
The sea mist swirled as the ship neared the jagged shores of Punk Hazard. In the distance, it looked like an lush green Island as it has yet to host the two Admirals battle that changed it to it's iconic half Magma and half frozen isle.
Punk Hazard was a lush island used by the World Government as a research station for chemical weapons. The island was home to Vegapunk, the Head Researcher, and Caesar, who was second in command. The World Government used pirates sent to Punk Hazard instead of prison as guinea pigs in their experiments.
Max knew the appearance of an abandoned island was likely just that—a cover. Though Vegapunk and his team had vacated the island, Caesar Clown, the rogue scientist with a knack for chaos and ambition for artificial Devil Fruits, is lurking in the depths, continuing his experiments in secret with the fundings from Beast Pirates and Doflamingo.
***
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